UN Peacekeeping needs Canada’s help

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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Canada’s contribution to UN peace operations currently ranks 55th in the world, with 160 persons deployed (30 military personnel and 130 police, as of 30 April 2012). Canada’s commitment to peacekeeping is declining, at a time when UN operations have increased and the need is greater than ever.

Multidimensional peace operations today require military and civilian teams with diverse capabilities to co-ordinate humanitarian aid, protect civilians, disarm and reintegrate former combatants, strengthen state structures and arrest indicted war criminals. Regional organizations such as NATO and the EU cannot match the range of civilian and military services that the UN can provide.

At the time of last week’s NATO Summit, Prime Minister Harper declared that no Canadian military personnel – troops, trainers or special forces – would remain in Afghanistan after 2014. "Now is the time for Canada to start re-engaging in United Nations peacekeeping," says Warren Allmand, former cabinet minister and current President of the World Federalist Movement – Canada. "The winding down of Canada’s mission in Afghanistan provides an opportunity for us to direct our military leadership and expertise to UN missions, where they are urgently needed by the world community."

According to Dr. Walter Dorn, a professor at the Canadian Forces Staff College, “UN peace operations provide unparalleled legitimacy to international efforts. That’s why Canadians, as shown in many polls, continue to support peacekeeping, even when Canada is at an all time low in contributions of personnel.”

In the Cold War period and up to 1995, Canada was a participant in every UN peacekeeping mission, though our leading role in the blue berets has been in decline since then. Mistrust of the UN after Rwanda, Somalia and Bosnia persisted among Canadian generals, despite UN reforms in the following decade and success in several peacemaking operations.

Carolyn McAskie, has had extensive experience with UN peace operations, as former AssistantSecretary-General leading the UN’s Peacebuilding Support Office, and before that as head of the UN Peacekeeping Operation in Burundi. According to McAskie, “Since 1995, UN Peace Operations have gone through major reforms and have achieved significant successes in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Burundi, East Timor and elsewhere. Canadian capabilities would be a welcome value added to current exercises.”